Portable ski tow

ABSTRACT

A portable ski tow mechanism utilizing a first winch ( 1 ) positioned adjacent one end of the ski run. The main ski rope ( 9 ) is wound onto a cable drum of the first winch ( 1 ). The rope ( 9 ) can be partly withdrawn and the free end transported to a remote location. The cable drum is rotated to wind the ski rope ( 9 ) onto the cable drum and to pull the skiers up the ski slope. In a modification, a second winch ( 20 ) is utilised. The second winch ( 20 ) has a cable drum on which an auxiliary rope ( 21 ) is wound. The free end of the auxiliary rope ( 21 ) is joined ( 22 ) to the free end of the main ski rope ( 9 ) and the auxiliary rope ( 21 ) is wound onto the cable drum of the second winch ( 20 ) to withdrawn the main ski rope ( 9 ) from the first winch ( 1 ). The two winches ( 1, 20 ) can be located at the same end of the ski run or at the opposite ends of the ski run.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] Ski tows for assisting skiers up ski slopes are well known. Knownski tows consist essentially of an endless rope loop between a fixeddriving station and a fixed slave station. The rope passes around a ropedrive pulley driven by a winch of the driving station and passes alsoaround a slave pulley of the slave station. The driving station and theslave station are appropriately positioned to maintain a desired tensionon the endless rope loop. Generally but not always the driving stationis located at the bottom of the ski run and the slave station is locatedat the top of the run. Both the slave wheel and the winch must be verysecurely located at a predetermined position so as to maintain adequatetension on the ski rope and to maintain the winch and the slave wheelbraced against any movement out of the desired location.

[0002] Generally a ski tow is a comparatively large installation and themanner in which the winch and the slave wheel are located means thatonce fixed in the desired location, it is rare for the apparatus to bemoved to another location.

[0003] In an endeavour to overcome that disadvantage, it is known toprovide portable forms of ski tows. One such form is disclosed in U.S.Pat. No. 4,023,502 (Elsing) which has a first portable frame assemblywith a motorised rope wheel and a second portable frame assembly for thereturn pulley for the rope. Both frame assemblies have means whereby theassemblies can be anchored to the ground.

[0004] Another form of portable ski tow rope apparatus is disclosed inU.S. Pat. Specification No. 4,920,892 (Pesek) which discloses a portableski tow unit which consists of an upper station and a lower rope returnstation. The upper station has a drive unit with a motor power drivepulley and with guide pulleys to guide the tow rope around the pulley.The rope return station is positioned at the base of the ski slope andhas an idler pulley which guides the tow rope. The two rope is in theform of a continuous loop passing between the drive pulley and the idlerpulley and the skier is able to grasp the upwardly moving rope to betowed up the hill. The disclosure is mainly concerned with a means toensure the rope passes satisfactorily around the drive pulley of thewinch.

[0005] U.S. Pat. Specification No. 5,205,219 (Groskreutz) disclosesanother form of portable ski tow rope mechanism which consists in amechanism for supporting the extreme ends of an endless loop of a skitow rope. A series of pulleys are utilised to guide the tow rope aboutan elongated enclosed path. A motor driven winch is located so the towrope will pass through the winch at a location which is within the skirope path and displaced from either extreme end. The winch includes apinch wheel to ensure the ski rope passes around at least 180° of thecircumference of the drive wheel.

[0006] U.S. Pat. Specification No. 3,739,728 discloses a portable winchfor a ski tow. A tow rope for the skiers serves also as a control linkto enable the winch to be actuated to wind up the cable under power orrelease the cable. The winch is able to pull itself to the top of theski run and when anchored, skiers can grasp the rope and be pulled tothe top of the hill. The rope can be pulled in a downhill directioneither by a weight or it can be pulled downwards by a skier.

[0007] U.S. patent application No. 3,874,303 includes an endless beltsupported by intermediate rollers and by end rollers. The belt includesconveyor means which are resiliently connected to the belt so thatskiers can hold the conveyor means between their knees or by their handsto enable the skiers to be pulled up the hill.

[0008] While the known forms of ski tow rope mechanisms as exemplifiedin the prior art referred to above are described as ‘portable’, they arenot in fact portable or if they are portable are of insufficient size tomake them practical as a viable alternative to fixed ski towinstallations. A further disadvantage with known forms of portable skitow rope mechanisms is that they can generally only be located where aclear run for both the upward and downward legs of the loop of the skirope can be obtained. This severely restricts the locations and themanner in which the mechanisms can be used.

OBJECT OF THE INVENTION

[0009] It is therefore an object of the invention to provide an improvedform of portable ski tow rope mechanism which does not require anendless tow rope and which can, with a minimum amount of effort, berelocated from one position to another and which is capable of operatinga tow rope of an adequate length.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Accordingly one form of the invention may be said to comprise aportable ski tow mechanism including a first winch having

[0011] drive means to rotate a cable drum to wind a main ski rope ontothe drum,

[0012] clutch means to connect or to disconnect the drum to the drivemeans

[0013] the construction and arrangement being that the winch is adaptedto be transported to and anchored adjacent one end of the intended skislope,

[0014] the main ski rope is wound onto the cable drum

[0015] the clutch is operated to disconnect the drum from the drivemeans, and

[0016] the main ski rope is withdrawn from the cable drum bytransporting the free end of the rope to a distant location whereupon askier or skiers can grasp the ski rope

[0017] the clutch is engaged to commence rewinding of the ski rope ontothe cable drum to haul the skier or skiers up the ski slope.

[0018] Preferably the winch includes guide means to guide the ski ropeonto the drum and brake means to enable rotation of the drum to beretarded when the drum is disconnected from the drive means.

[0019] Preferably the mechanism includes a second winch adapted to beanchored adjacent an end of the ski run, said second winch including

[0020] drive means to rotate a cable drum to wind an auxiliary ski ropeonto the drum,

[0021] clutch means to connect or to disconnect the drum to the drivemeans,

[0022] means to initiate operation of the second winch to wind theauxiliary ski rope onto the drum of the second winch and

[0023] means to disconnect the drum from the drive means to enable theauxiliary ski rope to be withdrawn from the drum,

[0024] the construction and arrangement being that the first and secondwinches are adapted to be utilised in unison by attaching the free endof the main ski rope to the free end of the auxiliary rope to therebycouple the two winches together and by operating the two winches in amanner that as the main ski rope is being withdrawn from the cable drumof one winch, the auxiliary rope is being wound onto the cable drum ofthe second winch.

[0025] Preferably the first winch is located adjacent a first end of theski run, and the second said winch is located adjacent a second end ofthe ski run, and in operation the clutch means of a winch is disengagedto disconnect the cable drum from the drive means,

[0026] the free end of the rope is withdrawn from the disengaged cabledrum and transported to the second winch and is connected to the freeend of the rope of the second winch,

[0027] the drum of the second winch is disconnected from the drive meansand

[0028] the clutch means of the first winch is engaged to commencere-winding of the rope onto the cable drum and to withdraw the rope fromthe drum of the second winch.

[0029] Preferably the ski tow mechanism includes a single winch islocated adjacent the top of the intended ski run, and in operation

[0030] the free end of the main ski rope is manually transported to thedesired location on the ski run to thereby withdraw the main ski ropefrom the cable drum and

[0031] the winch is activated to rewind the main ski rope onto the cabledrum to enable the main ski rope to be utilised to haul a skier orskiers up the ski run.

[0032] Preferably the method of operating a ski tow including twowinches comprises locating the first winch having a cable drum on whichthe main ski rope is wound adjacent the top of the intended ski run andlocating the second winch having a cable drum on which the auxiliaryrope is wound adjacent the bottom of the ski run and releasing theclutch means of one of the winches and withdrawing the rope from thecable drum until it can be connected to the free end of the rope on thecable drum of the second of the two winches and activating the winchhaving the cable drum to which the main ski rope is connected to windthe main ski rope onto the cable drum and to withdraw the auxiliary skirope from the cable drum of the second winch.

[0033] Preferably at least one of the winches is controlled remotely.

[0034] Preferably the remote control is by an electronic signal.

[0035] Preferably the first and second winches are situate adjacent eachother at one end of the ski run, and the rope is withdrawn from thecable drum of one winch and is passed around pulley means situate at thesecond end of a ski run and the free end of the rope from the firstwinch is joined to the free end of the rope from the second winch, thewinches being operated so the first winch having the cable drum on whichthe main ski rope is wound is utilised to haul a skier or skiers up theski slope and the second winch having the cable drum on which theauxiliary rope is wound is utilised to withdraw the main ski rope fromthe cable drum of the first winch.

[0036] Preferably the first and second winches are under the control ofa single operator.

[0037] Preferably the first and second winches share the same motivepower.

[0038] Preferably the motive power comprises an engine driving ahydraulic pump and wherein hydraulic lines connect the hydraulic pump toa hydraulic motor for the cable drum of the first winch and to the cabledrum of the second winch.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0039]FIG. 1 is a schematic elevational drawing of one side of a firstwinch mechanism for the main ski rope.

[0040]FIG. 2 is a schematic elevational drawing of the second side ofthe winch mechanism illustrated in FIG. 1.

[0041]FIG. 3 is a schematic elevational illustration of the front of thewinch mechanism illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2.

[0042]FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a highly preferred form of theinvention utilising a second winch.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED FORMS OF THE INVENTION

[0043] As illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 of the accompanying drawing,the apparatus includes a winch mechanism one form of which has a frame 1to house a rotary power means which may be an internal combustion engine2. The engine is coupled either to a gear train or chain drive or in ahighly preferred form to a hydraulic pump 3. The pump is in turn coupledthrough hydraulic lines 4 to a hydraulic motor 5 which drives a cabledrum 6 through a suitable clutch mechanism 7. The clutch is designed sothat when it is released, the cable drum 6 can freely rotate with aminimum of frictional resistance. Preferably also the cable drum isprovided with braking means such as a disc brake 8.

[0044] The cable drum is of a width and diameter that a considerablelength of main ski rope 9 can be wound onto the drum. A suitable rope isformed of polypropylene or other tough non degradable material which hassufficient strength for the task. It has been found that a rope ofpolypropylene of no more that 6 mm diameter can lift up to 1.5 tonnesand that is suitable for the task although other weights and sizes ofrope can also be utilised in the required circumstances. The length ofthe rope 9 will vary as required but preferably the rope should have alength of up to 1.5 kilometres and the cable drum must therefore be of asize that such a length of rope can be fully wound onto the drum. Toassist with the most efficient winding of the rope onto the cable drumthe mechanism preferably also includes a known type of cable feeder 10which can be suitably driven such as by a chain drive 11 from the cabledrum.

[0045] Suitable lifting handles or the like (not shown in the drawings)are also provided so that the unit can be transported. In a highlypreferred form, the winch mechanism is manufactured so that it can belifted by a helicopter so that it can be transported easily and simplyfrom one location to another.

[0046] To use the mechanism, it is first transported, such as by groundtransport or by a flying machine such as a helicopter to a suitablelocation where it is firmly secured in position at or adjacent to oneend of the ski slope using suitable anchors, such as snow anchors andpegs. An appropriate length of rope 9 will have been wound onto thecable drum and the clutch can then be released so the cable drum canfreely rotate. The free end of the main ski rope 9 can then be graspedand can be transported to a remote location. One method of this is for askier to take the rope and ski to the remote location. In amodification, the free end of the rope can be attached to a harnesswhich can be worn by the skier. The distance the free end of the mainski rope can be transported will preferably be up to 1.5 kilometres,depending upon the length of the rope and the topography of the country.The skier can then disengage if desired from the ski rope and intendingskiers can grasp the ski rope either at this time or later as desired. Asignal is then sent to the operator to activate the winch to commencewinding the main ski rope which will haul the skiers up the ski run. Thesecond operator can if desired grasp also be hauled to the top of theski run.

[0047] The signaling to the operator of the first winch can be effectedby any known means such as by direct sight, by radio telephony orwhatever suitable means it is decided to use.

[0048] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the apparatus preferably also includesa second winch 20 which is of a size that it is highly portable. Theancillary winch includes a drive means to drive a cable drum on which anancillary rope 21 is wound. The ancillary rope 21 is preferably at leastas long as the main ski rope but is of a lighter construction. In onemethod of operation, the second winch will be stationed at or near thebottom of the ski slope or run. In this mode, the free end of the mainski rope is permanently or temporarily joined to the free end of theauxiliary rope. One means of effecting this comprises the steps ofanchoring the first and second winches in position, drawing the main skirope from the cable drum of the first winch down the ski slope, forinstance by a skier or skiers to the location of the second winch. Thesecond winch will already have the auxiliary rope 21 wound onto thecable drum and the end of the main ski rope 9 may then attached to thefree end of the auxiliary ski rope. Such attachment can be by a simpleknot or by other mechanical means as is known in the art. The secondwinch is then configured to free the cable drum and the first winchactivated to draw the main tow rope up the ski run together with theskiers. Since the auxiliary rope 21 has been connected to the main skirope 9, the auxiliary rope will be withdrawn from the drum of the secondwinch as the main ski rope 9 is being wound onto the cable drum of thefirst winch.

[0049] The second winch can be either manually controlled or remotelycontrolled. If it is manually controlled, it is necessary for the winchto be attended by an operator. In this mode of operation, when the mainski rope 9 has been wound the desired amount onto the drum of the firstwinch, the drum of the main winch can be released and a signal sent tothe operator of the second winch by any known means, such as by alandline type telephone, radio telephony or other means as will beapparent, to activate the second winch. This will commence winding ofthe auxiliary rope onto the drum of the second winch and therebywithdraw the main ski rope from the cable drum back down the slop untila sufficient amount of the rope has been withdrawn. The operator willthen disengage the drive means to the cable drum of the second winch toallow it to rotate freely and the first winch can be operated tocommence winding the main ski rope onto the drum of the first winch forthe next cycle of hauling the skiers up the ski run.

[0050] If the second winch is to be remotely operated, it will notrequire an operator. Instead all the required functions can be initiatedor completed remotely under the control of the operator of the firstwinch. Such remote control can be by electrical or electronic signalssend either by wireless telegraphy or by landline or other means as willbe known in the art.

[0051] In yet another mode of operation, the first and second winchescan be situate at one end, preferably at the lower end of the ski run.In this mode both winch can be under the direct control of one operator.To effect this a pulley means is first anchored adjacent the top of theski run and the free ends of either or both the main ski rope and theauxiliary ski rope can be transported from the winches to the pulleywhere one rope is passed around the pulley and the free ends of the tworopes are joined. To utilise the arrangement in this mode, the winchesare set so that as the main ski rope is being wound onto the cable drumof the first winch, the auxiliary rope will be withdrawn from the cabledrum of the second winch. It will be understood that the main ski ropeis utilised to haul the skiers up the ski slope and the auxiliary ropewill be utilised to return the main ski rope back to its start position.While it is possible to adapt the two winches so that each can utilisethe same type of ski rope so that both runs of the ski rope can beutilised alternately to haul skiers up the ski run, it is highlypreferred that one of the winches be smaller than the other and to havean auxiliary rope which is a lighter grade than the main ski rope sothat skiers can be hauled up the ski run only by the main ski rope.

[0052] While in one form both winches can have independent motor drivemeans, inn the configuration where the first and second winch aresituate close together, it can be convenient for the two machines to usethe same power source. For instance if the engine of one winch drives ahydraulic pump, the secondary hydraulic lines cann be connected to thesecond winch to provide the motive power.

[0053] The main advantages provided by the ski tow rope mechanism of thepresent invention are the mechanism is very portable and does notrequire complicated anchoring system for the winch or winches. Thesystem also eliminates any problem of having to arrange all of themechanism to cope with a particular length of looped ski rope so thatthe mechanism can be used for any distance up to the maximum length ofrope capable of being wound onto the cable drums of one winch if onlyone winch is used, or onto both cable drums if two winches are used.

[0054] If a single winch is used, the free end of the main ski rope willgenerally be transported by a skier to the distant location. If twowinches are used, the free ends of either or both the main ski ropeand/or auxiliary rope can be transported by a skier or other means to alocation whereby the free end of the two ropes can be joined. The secondwinch therefore can be of particular assistance since it can eliminatethe necessity for a skier to tow the main ski rope down hill after eachrun. In addition, should the ski run be of a considerable length itcould be difficult for the skier to tow the rope down the ski slopeunaided and consequently the second skier can work in conjunction withthe second winch to considerably ease this task. Should the second winchnot be required for any reason, the auxiliary rope can be simplydetached from the main ski rope.

[0055] Since the winch mechanism is entirely self contained, to removethe apparatus to a new location, all that is necessary is to disconnectthe main ski rope from the auxiliary ski rope, if the second winch hasbeen used and wind the main skip rope 9 onto the cable drum. The firstand second winches can then be released from the anchoring means andtransported to the new location where they can be anchored and so readyfor operation.

[0056] Having disclosed the preferred forms of the invention, it will beapparent that modifications and changes can be made to the particularapparatus and method of carrying the invention into effect and yet stillcome within the basic concept of the invention. All such modificationsare intended to come within the scope of the present invention.

1. A portable ski tow mechanism including a first winch having drivemeans to rotate a cable drum to wind a main ski rope onto the drum,clutch means to connect or to disconnect the drum to the drive means theconstruction and arrangement being that the winch is adapted to betransported to and anchored adjacent one end of the intended ski slope,the main ski rope is wound onto the cable drum the clutch is operated todisconnect the drum from the drive means, and the main ski rope iswithdrawn from the cable drum by transporting the free end of the ropeto a distant location whereupon a skier or skiers can grasp the ski ropethe clutch is engaged to commence rewinding of the ski rope onto thecable drum to haul the skier or skiers up the ski slope
 2. 2. Theportable ski tow mechanism as claimed in claim 1, including guide meansto guide the ski rope onto the drum and brake means to enable rotationof the drum to be retarded when the drum is disconnected from the drivemeans
 3. 3. The ski tow mechanism as claimed in claim 1, including asecond winch adapted to be anchored adjacent an end of the ski run, saidsecond winch including drive means to rotate a cable drum to wind anauxiliary ski rope onto the drum, clutch means to connect or todisconnect the drum to the drive means, means to initiate operation ofthe second winch to wind the auxiliary ski rope onto the drum of thesecond winch and means to disconnect the drum from the drive means toenable the auxiliary ski rope to be withdrawn from the drum, theconstruction and arrangement being that the first and second winches areadapted to be utilised in unison by attaching the free end of the mainski rope to the free end of the auxiliary rope to thereby couple the twowinches together and by operating the two winches in a manner that asthe main ski rope is being withdrawn from the cable drum of one winch,the auxiliary rope is being wound onto the cable drum of the secondwinch.
 4. A method of operating a ski tow mechanism as claimed in claim3, wherein the first winch is located adjacent a first end of the skirun, and the second said winch is located adjacent a second end of theski run, the clutch means of a winch is disengaged to disconnect thecable drum from the drive means, the free end of the rope is withdrawnfrom the disengaged cable drum and transported to the second winch andis connected to the free end of the rope of the second winch, the drumof the second winch is disconnected from the drive means and the clutchmeans of the first winch, is engaged to commence re-winding of the ropeonto the cable drum and to withdraw the rope from the drum of the secondwinch.
 5. The method of operating a ski tow mechanism as claimed inclaim 1, wherein a single winch is located adjacent the top of theintended ski run, the clutch means of the winch is released the free endof the main ski rope is manually transported to the desired location onthe ski run to thereby withdraw the main ski rope from the cable drumand the winch is activated to rewind the main ski rope onto the cabledrum to enable the main ski rope to be utilised to haul a skier orskiers up the ski run.
 6. A method of operating a ski tow mechanism asclaimed in claim 3, wherein the first winch having a cable drum on whichthe main ski rope is wound is located adjacent the top of the intendedski run and the second winch having a cable drum on which the auxiliaryrope is wound is situate adjacent the bottom of the ski run and whereinthe clutch means of one of the winches is released and the ropewithdrawn from the cable drum until it can be connected to the free endof the rope on the cable drum of the second of the two winches andwherein the winch having the cable drum to which the main ski rope isconnected is activated to wind the main ski rope onto the cable drum andto withdraw the auxiliary ski rope from the cable drum of the secondwinch.
 7. The ski tow mechanism as claimed in claim 3, wherein at leastone of the winches is controlled remotely.
 8. The ski tow mechanism asclaimed in claim 7, wherein the remote control is by an electronicsignal.
 9. The ski tow mechanism as claimed in claim 3, wherein thefirst and second winches are situate adjacent each other at one end ofthe ski run, and the rope is withdrawn from the cable drum of one winchand is passed around pulley means situate at the second end of a ski runand the free end of the rope from the first winch is joined to the freeend of the rope from the second winch and wherein the winches areoperated so that the first winch having the cable drum on which the mainski rope is wound is utilised to haul a skier or skiers up the ski slopeand the second winch having the cable drum on which the auxiliary ropeis wound is utilised to withdraw the main ski rope from the cable drumof the first winch.
 10. The ski tow mechanism as claimed in claim 9,wherein the first and second winches are under the control of a singleoperator.
 11. The ski tow mechanism as claimed in claim 9, wherein thefirst and second winches share the same motive power.
 12. The ski towmechanism as claimed in claim 11, wherein the motive power comprises anengine driving a hydraulic pump and wherein hydraulic lines connect thehydraulic pump to a hydraulic motor for the cable drum of the firstwinch and to the cable drum of the second winch.